How to Write a Job Request That Gets Real Quotes

Describe the symptom and the thing, not just the trade

"Plumber needed" tells nobody anything. "Mixer tap in the kitchen drips from the spout, about a drop a second, started last week" tells a plumber which part to bring, how long it takes, and whether it is worth the trip.

If you know the make or age of the fitting, say so. If you do not, say that too — it is useful information.

Photographs are worth more than paragraphs

Two or three pictures answer questions you would not think to write: the shape of the fitting, the state of the wall behind it, whether the space is reachable. Take one close up and one from far enough back to show the surroundings.

Say when, and how flexible you are

A job that can happen any weekday morning attracts more offers than one that can only happen on Saturday at nine. If you have a hard deadline — a handover, an inspection, a guest arriving — put it in the request rather than discovering later that nobody could make it.

Explain the access

Fourth floor with no lift, parking that needs a permit, a building that requires the contractor to be registered at reception the day before: all of that is time, and time is price. Pros who learn about it on arrival either absorb the cost or pass it on with a bad taste attached.

Be honest about what you have tried

If someone already looked at it and could not fix it, say what they did. It stops the next pro repeating the same hour of work, and it often changes the diagnosis entirely.

Say what you have already bought

If the replacement tap is already sitting in its box in the hallway, that changes the quote and sometimes the pro: a job that needs no shopping trip is a shorter job. If you have not bought anything and would rather someone else chose the part, say that too — most pros are happy to supply, and the ones who are not will tell you.

The same goes for tools you expect them to bring. A job on a fourth-floor balcony that needs a ladder is not the same job as one that does not.

Compare the offers on more than the number

When the quotes come back, look at what each includes: materials, disposal, how long they expect to be there, and whether the price is fixed or hourly. Two identical numbers can describe very different afternoons.

Read the messages, too. A pro who asks a clarifying question before quoting has understood something about the job, and that is usually worth more than the difference between the top and bottom quote.

Questions people ask